Chapter 2:
Chronis
My head was fixed in place, but I could see every precise step of the robot beside me. I knew I’d been preparing for this moment for five years; they had told us we were “qualified” for this test, at least theoretically. Yet here I was, surrounded by cold metallic walls, staring at the injection tool in front of me, and I realized all that training was useless.
When death’s cold breath was this close, no amount of preparation felt adequate.
Was I really going to surrender to death without any resistance?
A thought burst within me as I confronted my own horror.
“It shouldn’t be this easy...”
My voice was desperate, like the last flicker of a dying flame, yet it echoed throughout my heart. Perhaps it was the only thought worth holding onto.
This wasn’t my fault. For five years, they had injected countless substances into my body, but I knew nothing of the outside world except what I’d been told. And what we were told—what we were taught—was that we should be proud of what we were.
But what a grand pride it was, wasn’t it? I was about to be killed any moment now.
For years, they had told us about history, about humans and robots. A society that had, under robot governance, supposedly risen from the ashes without war for centuries, had had to implement certain measures and developments to maintain its perfection.
We were one of those measures.
Normally, we were expected to be individuals who would show above-average adaptability to the chips and contribute to the state.
But even though it wasn’t our fault, we had failed to do so.
And now I was going to bear the weight of that failure.
Still, in a moment of courage or perhaps pure desperation, I gave in to the instincts that surged from within.
"I demand a reassessment!" My voice came out like the cry of a dying chick, and my eyes felt like they were about to burst.
I’d said those words just as the robot approached to administer the injection. It suddenly stopped.
"Assessment in progress..." it said in a flat tone.
Although we were “useless,” we were allowed a small margin of error. This allowed us the right to request a limited appeal.
I could hear the robot behind me, which was observing statistics, doing something. The robot beside me just stood there, watching.
“Request approved.” The robot spoke and returned to the place where it had left the chip. It then came back to me.
"Second trial starting..."
There was nothing more I could do. No matter what they taught us, no matter what they said, I couldn’t silence the animal instincts within me.
Fight or flight.
Just as they were about to insert the chip, I shifted my body to disrupt my balance. I raised my hand and gripped the robot’s arm firmly. Whether it was surprise or perhaps helplessness, I don’t know, but I managed to throw that metal body to the ground with a single motion. It was as if an explosion had gone off inside me. Anger merged with the instinct to survive. The shockwave shattered the silence around me as that metallic giant fell to the ground.
The robot hit the ground hard. Its arm had snapped, and its back was split in two. The sensors in the room began flashing warning signals. The robot beside me aimed its plasma gun at me without a moment’s hesitation. Voices started echoing from every direction.
I narrowly avoided the blast by taking cover behind the fallen robot. I couldn’t leave the room. If I was going to fight, I’d have to do it here. But I was up against a massive security robot. Yet, it seemed I’d managed to surprise them as well.
I had no choice but to attack it head-on. Even so, it was difficult.
But I had to try.
I leapt from my hiding spot, moving low to the ground. The robot aimed its weapon directly at where I was running. It was clear it was about to shoot. I lunged at it with a scream, managing to leap onto its head.
However, I’d forgotten one thing: these robots didn’t only use weapons. When necessary, they could also engage in physical combat, as evidenced by the experiments they killed at the end of each line.
The robot gripped my back with brutal force. The hold was so tight I could feel my ribs breaking inside me. I expelled the last breath from my lungs in agony.
“Defiant!”
The red glow of the sensors on its head pierced my eyes. Holding me as if it intended to crush me, it hurled me against the wall with immense force.
The impact was so strong, and the throw so fast, that when I hit the wall, it created a loud sound. It was as if life itself had paused for a moment. My entire body seemed frozen as it struggled to process all the pain. I couldn’t even lift my head. My ears were ringing. My vision blurred. I was on the verge of losing consciousness.
In a world so devoid of justice, I was like a trapped mouse, scratching everywhere but never reaching the light.
I was certain I was going to die.
The robot approached me, pointing its plasma gun at me.
"You are bound to obey the rules. The punishment for disobedience, as stipulated by the rules, is death."
I could see the blue glow at the end of the plasma gun. The other robot stood by, observing my final moments. As the red lights flashed, the robot I’d taken down earlier was now back on its feet.
It was all over. Mother, father, sister—I’m sorry. I couldn’t do it...
But at least I tried.
…
Just as I closed my eyes, ready to die, an unexpected sound reached my ears.
"Administrator mode: Step aside!" A voice called from behind the door.
Now, the massive door I had come through began to open. Outside, I could hear people shouting. It was the sound of a commotion from beyond the door.
As the door opened, the gun pointed at me was redirected toward it. All three robots turned away from me, focusing on the person approaching from beyond the door.
"Administrator mode: Scan!" It was a girl’s voice. A voice I wasn’t unfamiliar with.
I wasn’t sure if it was possible, but with a flicker of hope, I began waiting for the person to appear through the slowly opening door. Meanwhile, I wanted to help her. After all, if I was going to die, I’d die anyway.
“They’re three of them, and all three are diagonally from my voice’s directionI yelled at the top of my lungs.
The security robot turned back on me. It raised one arm to strike me.
"Damn…" With my barely able right hand, I tried to shield myself. I turned my head and reflexively closed my eyes.
“Administrator mode: Stop!” The voice resonated across the floor. It sent a shiver through me.
I opened my eyes. The robot’s arm had stopped just short of hitting me. I pushed myself aside, trying to distance myself. Just then, the person whose voice I’d heard earlier stood in front of me, looking down with a slight smile.
"Hey, Kaen." she said with a smile. I was shocked.
“Aeon?” My sister was standing right beside me, here to save me.
“I’ve been looking for you everywhere! I’m so glad I made it in time!” Her face was filled with incredible happiness. I looked into her anxious, trembling eyes. She bent down and hugged me. I could see the lights of the chip among her black hair. Still, it wasn’t something I cared about at that moment.
“You were looking for me—” Just then, the broken ribs beneath her embrace throbbed in pain. “Ow!”
“Sorry, are you okay, Kaen?” Aeon looked at me with concern. Her innocent, worried face—I had missed her so much…
“I’m… alright, more or less.” I felt my tears trickling down my cheeks. I tried to stand up slowly, but every movement sent waves of pain through me. Still, I needed to understand what had happened here. Aeon seemed to read the questions in my mind.
“I’ll explain everything, but we have to get out of here first.” She turned to the robot that had thrown me against the wall with angry face. “Administrator mode: Destroy!” The robot instantly powered down and collapsed to the floor.
“Wow…” I stared at my sister in awe. Aeon turned to the robot that had been tasked with inserting the chip into me.
“Administrator mode: Destroy.” After eliminating that one as well, she turned to the last robot. “Administrator mode: Command, obtain bone contour syringe.” Instantly, the robot moved to the materials on the nearby counter. It scanned the area and returned to Aeon with a syringe in hand. Aeon took the syringe.
“Administrator mode: Destroy.” She had deactivated the last robot as well.
“Aeon, how are you able to do this? Chips can’t do things like this,” I said in astonishment, just as Aeon prepared to inject the syringe into my arm.
“Not in normal people, no,” Aeon replied as she administered the injection.
"So… you’re a positive outlier?” I couldn't believe it. The injection was done, and I felt warmth spreading through my broken bones.
“Yes, but I still don’t understand why I can do things like this.” Aeon stood up and checked the surroundings at the door while I waited on the floor, healing.
“Then you—”
"Kaen, I promise I'll answer all of these. For now, let's try to get out of here, okay?" She looked at me with an understanding smile while gathering materials around us.
"Sorry, you're right. We need to save ourselves first," I said. Still, I hadn't expected my twin to act this way or to possess such power.
My body was starting to feel better. I slowly straightened up. My bones had healed. Even if I had internal bleeding... we could deal with that later.
"Let's go." Aeon had filled a bag she made from a bloody jumpsuit with most of the materials found here.
"Hand them to me," I said. Deep down inside I was suffering from my injury, but it wasn't something to think about right now.
"But..." Aeon looked at me with concern.
"Don't worry, I can handle it. Besides, you'll have a lot on your plate." I took the bag from Aeon's hands. "Where are we going?"
"We're going back the way we came. There must be a door somewhere."
"Alright, show me the way, let's go!" I said. I felt an incredible excitement inside me. I couldn't understand what was happening. Everything still felt like a dream. Still, there was one thing I knew:
I wasn't dead, my sister was by my side, and... I can escape.
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